The Dark Mage and his Apprentice (a Rythian and Zoey fanfic)
by Amber Stone Collins
Summary: This is a story illustrating my version of the love affair between Zoey and Rythian. It includes Duncan and might contain Sjin later. This is my perception of the story and does not necessarily follow the rules of minecraft. Also, instead of science vs magic I have used Sorcery (a science based magic) vs. Traditional Magic.
1. Caught in the Act

**Here is chapter one in the series. This is not going to stick to Rythian's actual series. This is my interpretation of it and what I think would be a cool spin off. I love what Rythian did with his, but my version is a bit more romance heavy. I also used Sorcery vs Traditional Magic rather than Magic vs Science because I found it easier to work with. I am very much open to any ideas you have for the characters and plot line so let me know. I will try to keep these beginning things to a minimum because I don't like disclaimers. There are some occasions where I may need to explain things though if they don't make sense out of context. I hope you enjoy. **

* * *

Zoey glanced around nervously. _Just once more, she thought to herself. If it doesn't work this time, I'll give it up._

Slowly, she began to redraw the complex circle on the paper. The wind on the left and the fire on the right. On the top was water and on the bottom was earth. Between them were elaborate letters in a long forgotten language, connecting the elements together. Any Sorcerer would be able to do this spell. It was the first one anyone learned. Most accomplished it on their first try, but they had teachers to instruct them. Zoey was teaching herself. She knew that it wasn't as simple as copying the image. Each line had to be drawn a certain way and in a certain order. She had found the theory of it in an old book, but it was hard to read and the instructions were written for an experienced Sorcerer. She didn't know what it meant to draw a "Holy Line" or to make sure the circle was "flawlessly complete." Those were things she had to figure out on her own.

The circle glowed as she drew the last line. Zoey nearly squealed out loud in excitement. She'd found the exact order! Now all that was left was to draw the circle in the air and officially cast the spell. Zoey took a deep breath, picked up her crudely hand-made wand and began. Wind on the left. Fire on the right. Water on top. Earth on the bottom. She began at wind and drew the letters counterclockwise, being sure to start each one from the top and connect them all so that there were no breaks in the circle. It appeared in the air as golden lines, hovering there unmoving. As soon as the final line was complete, the circle glowed brightly and disappeared a second later.

Zoey pointed her wand at the cup of water and pointed the tip of the wand up. The water followed it, shifting into a convenient ball. Zoey laughed in excitement and returned the water to the cup. She pointed her wand at a pile of dirt she'd brought in and did the same. She led a flame from one candle to another and then split it and shared the fire between the two wicks. The air was more complicated. It took her a second to figure out how to focus on something she saw through, but eventually she was making little tornadoes around the room, scattering her failed attempts of drawing the circle all over the library.

Zoey put down the wand and rubbed her hands together, preparing for the focus this next step would take. She held her arms straight out in front of her, palms up. Taking a deep breath, Zoey closed her eyes and focused on every bit of water, dirt, fire, and air in the room. The weight of the objects pressed down on her in the form of magic pressure. It was a bit more overwhelming than she expected, but Zoey managed to keep control. Slowly, she raised her palms, feeling gravity protest against her. She opened her eyes. The dirt, the water, every flame in the room, her little tornadoes: all were hovering above where they had previously been.

"Zoey?!" a familiar voice exclaimed.

Shocked, Zoey whirled around to face him.

The water fell, half landing in the cup the other half splashing all over the table. The dirt fell in a pile on the ground. The fire and tornadoes vanished completely, plunging them into darkness.

He snapped his fingers and the flames re-lit.

"Rythian I..." Zoey began, but he walked out without listening.

She chased after him.

"Rythian!"

"Practicing Sorcery?! After all I taught you?! After all the time I spent trying to teach you real magic?!" he shouted, whirling around, his purple eyes seeming to glow. His mouth and nose were covered by the block mask he wore over them, but she could still hear him perfectly well and see how angry he was. His clothes indicated he had been out. He was wearing his black tank top shirt and jeans with a piece of purple cloth tied around the middle of his upper arm on both arms. On his forearms he wore metal plates that went from wrist to elbow, only covering the outer side of the arm. The mask was part of a black cloak that was still on his shoulders, but the hood wasn't up. His brown hair with a light brown streak in it stuck up in all different directions, messy as usual.

"I... I'm sorry. I just wanted to see what I could do..." Zoey said quietly, looking at the ground.

Against his better judgement, Rythian softened. He couldn't help but want to forgive his fire-haired apprentice. And he also couldn't help but notice that she was wearing the green tank top he'd bought her the other day. Her black jeans hugged her legs and were held up by a thin brown belt. Her usually clean red hair was pulled back in a sloppy ponytail with many strands hanging down by her face. She must have gotten out of bed and had been in too much of a hurry to remember to brush her hair or clean the paint off her face. The two red lines that always sat on her right cheek had become smudges that could be mistaken for blood from a distance at first glace. Her deep blue eyes could hardly meet his.

"Science and magic do not belong together, Zoey. You know this," he reminded her, his eyes going back to their normal light.

"Don't you think that's a bit old fashioned?" she asked, looking back up at him.

He glared down at her.

"No," he growled, walking away. The two purple eyes on the back of his cloak stared at her menacingly. "Clean up that mess in there. I better not catch you practicing Sorcery in my house ever again."

Zoey didn't move for a few minutes. Then, slowly, she returned to the library and began to clean. She knew there was only one way to learn Sorcery now, but Rythian would hate her forever if he ever found out. Zoey took a deep breath. She'd just have to be really sneaky.


	2. The Forbidden Journey

"Zoey Proasheck?" the blond man inquired, shocked.

Zoey nodded.

"You are Duncan, correct?" she asked.

"Yes. Did Rythian send you?" he asked, eyeing her suspiciously.

"No, I came of my own accord," Zoey replied, trying to act brave.

"Why?" Duncan asked, pulling the door a little more open so that he could see her better.

"I want to learn Sorcery," she replied, standing as straight as she could.

"Come in," Duncan said, pulling the door open so that she may enter the castle.

Zoey walked by him tentatively, trying to be bold, but knowing this was the one place Rythian could never know she went. He'd kill her if he found out. Or worse.

"May I take your cloak?" Duncan offered, holding out his hand.

Zoey hesitated, then handed it over.

"Go through that door straight ahead. I will meet you there and we will talk," he instructed her.

Zoey did as he said.

Duncan checked her out from behind as she walked. She was certainly very attractive. Her green shirt worked wonderfully with her fiery red hair, which was pulled back behind her in a neat braid that went down to her lower back. Her tight black jeans showed off her cute butt and sexy legs. She had drawn two parallel zig zags wrapped around her right upper arm. They were on the same side as the red equal sign was on her face. Her forearms were wrapped in white cloth like she was a mummy. Her attire made her apprenticeship to Rythian obvious. There was no doubt about it. Those were Mage clothes.

Duncan joined her in the room a few minutes later. Zoey checked him out discreetly. He was quite handsome. His blond hair and finely shaped face made him attractive in a very different way from Rythian's dark, sexy vibe. He wore white robes over a light blue shirt and black pants. A pair of goggles were perched on his head for when he mixed potions, which was apparently quite often.

"So you want to learn sorcery?" he asked, sitting down across from her.

A small coffee table separated them. Paper and pens were strewn across the table, begging to have circles drawn and spells written out on top of them.

"Rythian refuses to teach me," she replied.

"Show me what you can do," he instructed, leaning back in his chair and looking at her expectantly.

Zoey instantly became nervous. Now she was breaking two rules. Slowly, she pulled the wand out of her pocket and carefully constructed the circle in the air. She made the wrong move a few times and it fizzled and vanished, but after three tries she got it right and managed to make a small tornado appear and organize the papers into stacks on the table.

"You taught yourself?" Duncan enquired once she finished.

"Yes," Zoey replied.

Duncan smiled.

"You have talent. Come with me, I will show you more," he said, standing and walking through another door.

Zoey followed, beginning to feel very excited. He thought she had talent!

Duncan led her to a library. A real library filled with books on spells, magic circles, and potion making. He pulled out his wand, constructed a magic circle in a couple of seconds and caused a book to fly straight into her arms.

"Read that," he told her. "It will introduce you to sorcery terms. You cannot master the art unless you learn the basics."

Zoey quickly obeyed, finding a comfortable chair and reading the book eagerly, soaking up every word.

Duncan focussed on her while pretending to put all his focus into potion making. She was so eager to learn. Her power was weak, but the fact that she had managed to teach herself a spell while knowing nothing was impressive. She must really be desperate to have come to him, though. His feud with Rythian went back to the beginning of time. Rythian had never liked him. He hated all Sorcery. Duncan was open to traditional magic and used both openly, but he prefered Sorcery. It made more sense. There was an actual theory behind it, whereas traditional magic was all about channeling your energy and seeing what you wanted, making it happen. It was more theoretical than concrete.

A few hours later Duncan took the book from Zoey's hands.

"What is a complete circle?" he asked.

"One that has no breaks in it," she replied.

"What does it mean if a circle is flawless?"

"It is a perfect circle."

"A Holy Line?"

"One that is drawn from the top down."

"A Hellish Line?"

"One that is drawn from the bottom up."

"If a circle has Undefined Lines?"

"The lines could be drawn from either the top or the bottom, but it must be consistent. Either they are all drawn from the top or they are all drawn from the bottom."

"Very good," Duncan said, smiling. "What chapter were you on when I took the book?"

"The theory of wand holding," Zoey replied.

"Show me what you know," he instructed.

Zoey pulled out her wand and held it like she would hold a pen.

"This is for drawing circles," she said.

She held it in a fist.

"This is for fighting."

She held the wand between her thumb and index finger.

"This is for spells that require a loose grip."

She relaxed, holding the wand in her fist at her side.

"That's all I got to."

"Very impressive," Duncan said. "There isn't much more. Just be careful using a fighting grip when you hold it at your side. I would advise a fairy grip."

Zoey adjusted her hand to hold the wand between her thumb and index finger.

"What now?" she asked, eager to learn more.

"Now we will make you a better wand, Duncan told her, holding out his hand for the one she currently held.

Zoey hesitated. It had taken her months to build this wand. There had been so many trials and errors. She felt attached to it. But she handed it over anyways, flinching when he broke it in half to inspect the insides.

His eyes widened.

"You only used horsehair as a core?" he asked.

"That's all I could get," she explained, ashamed.

"Yet you were still able to cast a spell. Very impressive. You are more powerful than I thought," he said smiling and walking over to a table covered in branches and various tools. "What type of wood would you like?"

"I don't know the difference," she admitted, her cheeks turning pink.

Duncan smiled at her, she was cute when she blushed.

"Come here, I'll show you."

She obeyed.

They ended up choosing oak. It was not the most efficient, but it was powerful and strong, good for beginners. At least that's what Duncan told her. The truth was that oak was usually given to mid level Sorcerers. It took more magical power than most woods, but it produced better results. Had she been less talented, he would have had her choose dog wood. It was not very durable, but it was very efficient and produced only enough magic so that the Sorcerer could cast the spell without loosing control.

After they picked the wood, he showed her how to carve the branch evenly, stripping it of its bark and turning it into a rob with one side narrower than the other. After that he showed her how to carve out the inside and helped her choose a core. Again, he tricked her into choosing one better suited for a mid level Sorcerer, a human heart string. It would be powered by emotion rather than magic energy. Emotion was not as easy to control, but it was more plentiful. Duncan looked forward to seeing if she could handle it.

Finally, he helped her seal the end of the wand with a wax seal on which he carved a Z. He handed it to her.

"Create the Elemental Circle."

She did. Her movements were much more precise than before and she got it right on her first try.

Duncan smiled. She was certainly talented.

"It's late," he said once she finished playing with the elements in the room. "Your master will notice if you are gone too long. I believe Blackrock is about an hour's walk from here."

Zoey was surprised to hear the name of Rythian's castle.

"You know where Black Rock Fortress is?" she asked.

"You knew where my castle is, didn't you?" he asked in response.

Zoey nodded. Rythian had always made it sound like he had the upper hand. Maybe they were more equal than he thought.

"I will get you your cloak," Duncan said, walking out.

Zoey walked to the front door and waited for him to return. He came back a few minutes later and handed her the cloak.

"What will you say you have been doing all day?" he inquired as she put it on.

"I was looking for mushrooms," Zoey replied.

"And when you come back with none?"

"I won't. I saw a circle of them by the road on my way here. It will only take a few minutes to gather them up."

"I could help you," he offered.

"No," Zoey said. "This was dangerous enough."

Duncan nodded, understandingly.

"I hope you realize I have nothing against your master," he said. "He is the one that continues to fight a nonexistent battle."

Zoey didn't respond. She simply walked out the door.

"When will you come back?" Duncan asked.

"Tomorrow if I can," Zoey replied, pulling her hood up. It had started to rain.

"Be careful, Zoey," Duncan warned.

"I will," she replied, beginning the long walk home.


	3. Regrets

**I should say before I begin that Rythian and Zoey already have a stable relationship in my version and are sleeping together every night. **

* * *

Rythian was already asleep by the time Zoey got home. Quietly, she changed into a grey t-shirt and black sweat pants. She pulled her hair down and washed the paint off her arm and face, placing the cloth that had been wrapped around her arms on the dresser. She walked over to his side of the bed and looked down, trying to contain a giggle. He'd fallen asleep in his day clothes again.

Carefully, Zoey untied his cloak and pulled the mask off of his face, revealing a slightly stubbly chin. He had forgotten to shave that morning. She unclasped the metal plates on his arms and untied the purple cloth, placing it all on the dresser beside her arm wraps. Slowly, she pulled the blanket off of him and began unhooking the sword from his belt.

Zoey gasped when his hand suddenly wrapped around her arm. His purple eyes were alarmed and watching her. She saw them fill with recognition and felt his grip relax.

"You're back," he said, sitting up and gently moving her aside so that he could unequip his belt himself.

"I'm sorry I'm late. I got side tracked," she said, taking his sword from him and placing it against the wall.

"What were you doing all day today?" he asked, getting up and going over to the dresser to change clothes.

Zoey looked away.

"I was gathering mushrooms," she lied.

"Again?"

"I can never have enough."

"Surely that's not true," Rythian said, a small laugh in his voice.

"It is true."

She felt his bare arms wraps around her waist from behind.

"Were you successful?" he asked.

"Yes," she said, a smile playing on her lips.

"Is it worthy of a celebration?"

She twisted around to face him. His chest was bare. In the place of jeans he now wore grey sweat pants. She started to say yes then thought of Duncan and stopped. How could she celebrate breaking Rythian's most important rule?

"Not tonight," she said, kissing his chin and moving away to get into her side of the bed.

He lay down beside her.

"Are you ok?"

He genuinely sounded concerned. A pang of guilt flew through Zoey's heart.

"I'm just tired," she said, trying to sound reassuring.

Rythian reached over and pulled her onto his chest.

"Then sleep," he told her.

Zoey nodded and closed her eyes, suddenly more awake than before. She knew he could feel it. He could hear her breathing and feel her heart beat accelerate at his touch. He knew she wanted him, but couldn't tell why she was resisting. Had he done something wrong? Was she mad at him for yelling at her the other day?

Neither of them slept.


	4. A New Development

"I didn't think you'd come back," Duncan said, moving aside to let Zoey in.

"Just teach me," she replied.

Duncan held out his hand for her cloak and she gave it to him. He noticed her change in attitude. She didn't seem as excited as she had been the day before.

"What would you like to learn?" he asked, leading her back into the library.

"Anything," she responded, pulling her wand out of her pocket.

"Are you ok, Zoey? Did Rythian do something to upset you?"

"No, it's not him. It's nothing. Just teach me," she said, quietly, holding the wand in her fist.

Duncan nodded.

They worked for hours. It was a simple spell, but Zoey couldn't seem to make her wand cooperate. He watched her draw the circle on paper until her hand hurt, but every time she tried it with the wand, it shivered and died within the first three lines.

"Maybe we should take a break," he said finally.

Zoey nodded, walking out of the library and into the sitting room with the coffee table.

"What happened?" he asked, following her out.

"I told you, nothing," she replied, lying on the couch.

"That's a lie," Duncan said, sitting in the chair across from her.

"I just feel a little guilty, that's all."

Duncan laughed.

"You feel guilty?! Zoey he's being ridiculous. If you want to learn Sorcery, why shouldn't you?"

Zoey looked over at him. He was right. Why shouldn't she practice whatever kind of magic she wanted? Why shouldn't she be friends with Duncan?

"You know I'm right," he said.

Zoey smiled slightly and looked back at the ceiling.

"You're a little right," she replied.

Duncan smiled and got up, going over to her. She looked over at him. He pulled out his wand and started drawing a magic circle in the air. She sat up and watched curiously as he completed the circle. It glowed and vanished. His wand absorbed the power.

"What was that?" she asked.

"A very simple spell."

"What does it do?"

Duncan pointed his wand at the paper on the coffee table. There was a flash of light and the papers were scattered across the room.

"Duncan!" Zoey exclaimed in shock.

"It creates a mini explosion," he said, laughing.

"Why the hell did you do that?!"

"To scare you," he responded, moving closer to her.

"What are you doing?" she asked, leaning away.

"Relax," he said, sitting beside her and putting his arm around her, pulling her closer.

"Duncan, you know I'm with Rythian, right?" she reminded him, moving away.

"You're his apprentice," Duncan responded, moving closer.

"Well ya, but we kind of have a thing." she stood and backed up. "I'm sorry, I can't."

Duncan stopped.

"I didn't realize."

Zoey didn't say anything.

"Let's get back to the lesson," Duncan said, getting up and going back into the library.

Zoey followed tentatively.

The rest of the day was different. Zoey never got the spell and Duncan spoke to her strictly as a teacher. He never once showed any signs of affection or friendship. When it was time for her to go home, he got her the cloak and sent her on her way. He didn't offer to walk her or ask her what she would do for an excuse or even bother to wish her good luck. He let her out and closed the door with only a small, "see you tomorrow."

The entire walk home she thought of Rythian.


End file.
